In the Mood for some Good Food

Homework. It's not enjoyable at any age. I hate being given homework, because I seem to think I'm mature enough to learn information without having to be forced to memorize it. Well, most of the time. I have classes for the next 2 nights and I'm cramming all my homework again, just like the good old days. I have an excuse though. I've been sick. I hate that slimy, chilly, sweaty feeling you get when you're sick. My saliva tastes mediciney. I am starting to get my appetite back now, especially after reading my good friend Cha's culinary adventures.

What is your signature dinner dish? I think it would have to be jigae: kimchi jigae, daenjahng jigae, dubu jigae or mehuhn tahng. I'm actually pretty good at making anything soupy. I love Korean stews. They are so hearty and SO nutritious. For non-Korean, I would have to say my beer can chicken.

What is your signature dessert? I can make a mean birthday cake and decorate it just as nicely as the store-bought kind. My favorite cake to make is a butter cake with pineapple syrup, vanilla custard and a very lightly sweetened whipped cream frosting. It is my responsibility to make all the family birthday cakes.

What is your signature drink? Tea. Not that I'm better than anyone else at boiling water, but my Dad brought back the most amazing black tea from China and it is pure comfort in a mug.

What food/dish holds the most meaning for you? I have two: Chicken fried steak and meatloaf. I must have been the only kid throughout all my school years that got excited on chicken-fried steak days at the school cafeteria. I've searched high and low and chicken fried steak here in CA just doesn't compare to TX. The best version I've tasted in LA is at Black Cow in Montrose on Honolulu. Meatloaf is another favorite comfort food. It has significance in my life because one of my passions in life is perfecting my meatloaf recipe. It's partly a blend of recipes from Barefoot Contessa and Joy of Cooking and some of the ingredients include ground turkey (shhh, don't tell), oatmeal and at least half a dozen root vegetables.

What food/dish would you be happy to never eat again? I have very few food aversions. For those who know me, you know I will try anything at least once and it's rare for me not to like a particular food, but if I had to choose one, it would be soondae. In case you don't know, it's blood sausage. It's made of rice, vegetables, coagulated beef blood (yes, you heard me right), encased in intestine. My husband loves it and I am sickened by even the smell of it. That's probably the only food disagreement we have.

What food did you dislike as a child, but now enjoy very much? It's hard to believe but I used to hate cilantro and avocados. Crazy. Cilantro was definitely an acquired taste for me, which I absolutely love now. I think I hated avocados because I had some unsavory guacamole once as a child and someone told me it was made of avocados, which I then avoided for about 20 years. Now I buy them by the 6-pack at Costco every month.

What food did you love as a child, but cannot tolerate anymore? Chef Boyardee. How did we eat that crap? I remember enjoying it as a child, but recently I thought I'd try some again and it tasted putrid and was all mushy. My kids like it, so it must be one of those tastes we un-acquire when our tastebuds mature.

What is your favorite street or fast food? Without hesitation, In-N-Out. I don't know how anyone outside CA can survive without their burgers. I never thought hamburgers were that good until I had an In-N-Out burger on my first trip to LA. My usual is a cheeseburger with onion, and extra lettuce & tomato. Occasionally I will get the double-double and when I'm in the mood, animal style. There is an In-N-Out stand within walking distance of my home. I know. I'm blessed.

What is your favorite restaurant dish? Hot: Galbi at Sutbul Jeep or Chamsoogol (although you'll have a much better dining experience at the latter). Cold: Any sushi at Sasabune. Just go along with what the chef says.

What is/was your greatest restaurant experience? The Anuenue Room at the Ritz in Maui. First of all, it was our honeymoon, so there were no kids; only the two of us, and we had no worries in the world. The other reasons why it was so memorable were the amazing service, the incredible food cooked to perfection, the delicious sweetbread (calf thymus), the luscious chocolate souffle, and of course, Maui. Sadly, the restaurant is no longer around.

What is/was your greatest restaurant disappointment? It's rare for us to have a bad experience, because we usually do so much research before we even step foot in a restaurant. We like to check Zagat, Chowhound and get recommendations first. It's hard to have a spontaneous dining experience with all that work. But years ago, we were walking through our old neighborhood and decided to randomly stop at a local sushi place for a bite. The sushi was worse than the previously frozen fish you get at the market, and it was served up raw! I think that was the last spontaneous dining experience we've had. Unless you live in Studio City, don't ever eat at the local neighborhood sushi joint.

What is/was your most upsetting culinary experience? I have 2. I made my beer can chicken in our new barbecue and I guess I hadn't stabilized the chicken enough (it balances over the mouth of a half-filled beer can). I came back 30 minutes later and apparently the chicken had toppled over with the beer and got scorched, along with the inside of the new barbecue. The other happened shortly after we got married. I decided to be a good Korean wife and try to learn how to make a bunch of traditional Korean side dishes, using only a list of ingredients from my mom or Joe's mom and my own tastebuds to guide me (it's hard to find a good Korean cookbook and Korean parents don't use recipes). I made 4 different dishes at once, most of them requiring overnight soaking of dried ingredients and then shredding and marinating them. After all my laboring in the kitchen, I couldn't get any of it to taste right. I'm much better at making those dishes now, but it was the worst cooking memory because of all the hours of preparation and buildup, with nothing to show at the end.

What is/was your most satisfying culinary experience? My most satisfying cooking experience may be last summer when we went camping and I prepared salmon steaks with slivers of onions and sweet peppers, garlic and ginger; topped with a teriyaki wasabi sauce; wrapped individually in foil packets and thrown over the fire. Who says you can't camp in style? My most satisfying baking experience may have been making 5 (or was it 6?) birthday cake centerpieces from scratch for my first daughter's 1-year birthday party. They were decorated with individually made sugar leaves and lollipop flowers. It turned out so well that I did it again for my second daughter's 1st Birthday.

What is/was your funniest culinary experience? the aforementioned baking experience. Imagine my little brother, Cha and me frantically sifting, baking, mixing and frosting 6 cakes in a dinky kitchen with very little counter space. It was also funny because I got to make them my sous chefs and sift about a hundred cups of flour and powdered sugar with my 1 poorly functioning sifter.

If you had to eat the same dish for dinner every night for the rest of your life, what would it be? kimchi jigae, with a bowl of rice and gim. I would do it by choice, too. I wait with anticipation until the kimchi in the fridge gets overly ripe, so I can cook up a big pot of mouth-watering, spicy, tangy, salty, savory kimchi jigae. Excuse me, gotta go grab a tissue. I'm actually drooling at the thought.